Ambulance service rejects unfilled paramedic shift figures

Ambulance Victoria has disputed figures reporting an increase in the number of unfilled paramedic shifts in regional Victoria.

Documents obtained by the State Opposition under freedom of information laws report the number of unfilled shifts rose from nearly 1,500 in 2011 to more than 1,700 in 2012.

However, Ambulance Victoria's Mick Stephenson says although the system does need improving, the figures do not account for shifts filled locally.

"On any given month filling at least a quarter or two-thirds of the shifts that are said to be dropped, and we do so via a number of mechanisms, we use our ambulance community officers, we use managers to fill shifts, we split shifts from various locations and so on," he said.